An Atmosphere of Annoyance

I love the eclectic atmosphere that our local coffee shop Moxxee offers. It is in a great part of town and offers quite the escape from places like the Mall. However today, there is a person who is competing vocally with the overhead music. I want to walk over to the table and say "hey buddy, they have an outside seating area, I am not sure why you need to converse so loudly. Am I being an old crank by feeling this way? I've been here several times and have never experienced this "loudness". I can clearly hear his conversation, while the answers or those engaged in conversation with him and muted by the music. But his words are quite distinct and I can understand everything he says. BTW I am seated on the total opposite side of where he is sitting. Happy Fathers Day to all the Dads out there!

Silence. Absolute Silence

While driving home yesterday, I suddenly got the urge to use the bathroom. Because I was driving I was unable to do the jiggly dance that wards off the bladder pressure. And suddenly the radio was annoying me. My favorite station on satellite radio and I was annoyed by the very sound of the hosts voices. So I had to turn off the radio and then it was the text message sound alerts that my phone kept making in the back seat (yes in order to avoid wanting, attempting or actually reading text messages, I put my phone in the back seat (actually the pocket behind the passenger's side, so I can't possibly reach it). All of those sounds annoyed me. I don't know why I thought turning off the radio would alleviate the anxious pressure or make me forget about having to use the bathroom. It didn't work, I was staving it off until I pulled into the driveway. I realize now that this was probably way too much information...

Spring Has Sprung

Sping has sprung. I don't want to jinx the days, but wow! Today was absolutely gorgeous. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that today was my niece's tenth birthday. She is turning out to be a beautiful girl. I'm not just saying that because I'm biased, but she really is...great personality, great smile (if you look past the braces) and even keeled, especially to be the oldest (with two very active, very sports minded and shall I say sometimes obnoxious younger brothers). I"m sure that is why the sun was shining. It was her gift from the Lord, a sunny day to keep her brothers outside and let her revel in the peace a quiet house can bring. I hope everyone had a beautiful day!! Happy birthday Bella. You are loved!

Bathe, Splash Some Cologne On, Use a Wet Wipe

Today,I met one of the worse smelling people I have ever encountered. And this person is in customer service. He deals with people every day! The smell was so bad that I honestly thought I was going to pass out. I wonder why someone would leave their home without practicing some hygiene? It baffles me. This person is not homeless. He is gainfully employed. He does not have a disease that would cause him to smell. It is just plain and simple neglect. His clothes were obviously washed, for there was no dirt on them. His shoes were tidy. He just didn't bathe!! And it grosses me out. My hour is ruined. Maybe I should not care. Maybe it is none of my business. Maybe I shouldn't be writing such hateful things. But as of this hour, and it has been approximately 12 since our encounter, I am still grossed out.

Spring

I woke up to the sound of a chirping bird. The sun was shining. It made me think that spring was around the corner. Someone mentioned earlier this week that the farmer's almanac predicted one more bad winter storm in April. April is three weeks away. Spring isn't right around the corner. This is considered one of the bad winters. Charleston has been slammed with worse winters in the past. At least I recall that there were winters in which it seemed to snow a lot more. Am I getting old that I can remember weather pattern changes? I don't know. But I do recall almost being out of school for a week. I even remember that when I went to college in Morgantown, that there was a couple days the university closed because of a state of emergency. The university rarely closed. But it did. This winter is a like this funk that I'm in. It has seemed to wane longer than expected. And I know that it won't last. Spring for me is around the corner. Mother nature may not play with the temperatures to change the season. But for me, my spring is around the corner.

Can You Count?

Maybe today was an off day for me. I had a particularly stressful day at work. So this probably didn't help. But working out certainly did things for my stress levels. After working out, I headed to Kroger for a few items and as I had less than 10 items got into the 15 or less item line. The lady in front of my was holding one thing. The customer in front of her had a cart. The cart had enough groceries for a week. I was a little annoyed. Why does a grocery store put up a sign that says "15 items or less" if they aren't going to enforce this. I can understand letting 16 items fly under the radar. I can even understand 20. But are you kidding me with an entire grocery cart full of things--both top cart and the shelf underneath. The clerk looked uncomfortably back and the customer in front of me and smiled. I don't normally let little things get to me, but when I got up to the clerk I asked "why do you have a line for 15 items or less if you aren't going to enforce it"? It would just be better not to have it at all.

Long Long Winter

It has been such a long winter and many sad things happened last month. And I should have come here to write about them. I know that talking about it gets it out--or at least allows some closure. It may also help people to face the situations. But I did not write about it, nor did I talk about it. I just shut down and closed myself off. I'm alright. My relatives however have been going through some rough patches. Two different families have suffered losses. Some friends have asked out of concern or maybe curiosity how we are holding up. I say fine. And some days it is true, Other days I see one or more uncles, aunts, cousins with such sadness my heart and soul break. Prayer has helped. It has helped me to cope with the overwhelming sadness. No matter what people say, I always find hope and light in prayer. Is it the rhythmic pattern of saying these prayers over and over (as in the repetition of the Hail Mary on a rosary). Some might say so. However, I believe it is my connection to God and my faith that He will get us through this. So perhaps I am explaining my absence or justifying why I've broken my promise to write more consistently. I am back and I will keep this blog up to date.